Improvement in apparatus for collecting the precious metals in mining-sluices



. J. B. BEERS. n Improvement in'qApparatus for Collecting' the-Precious Metals from' Minir'lg-Sluices.

No. 129,644, 257/, Patented Julyvzs, 1872.

UNITED STATEs PATENT OEEIGE.

JOHN B. BEERS, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR COLLECTING THE PRECIOUS METALS IN MINING-SLUICES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 129,644, dated July 23, 1872.

SPEcrErcATIoN.

To all whom it may concern:

Be-t known that I, JOHN B. BEERs, of the city and county of San Francisco, State of California, have invented a Safety-Pocket and Guiding-Rimes for Mining-Sluices; and I do hereby declare the following description and accompanying drawing are sufficient to enable any person skilled in the art or science to which it most nearly appertains to make and use my said invention and improvements without further'invention or experiment. The object of my invention is to provide a attachment for mining-sluices which, in combination with a peculiar arrangement of the rifies in the bottom of the sluice, will provide a means of arresting anddrawing otf from the l sluice all particles of gold which may reach the bottom of the sluice before passing the rifIies. My invention is applicable to all kinds of sluice-mining; but kits chief value will be found in what is known as hydraulic mines. In hydraulic mining it is the custom to continue the operation of washing down the banks and running the earth through the sluices for several months before stopping to clean up and discover the result, thus leaving the owners in ignorance as to whether the work is paying or not, and requiring the additional expense of employing watchmen to guard the sluices and prevent their being robbed at night. My invention is intended to arrest the gold which would otherwise be caught on the bottom of the sluices and convey it to a receptacle which is under lock and key, and which is attached to the sluice at some convenient point,

from which the proper person can, in a very short time, remove the arrested metal without interfering with the sluicing operation.

In order to explain my invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure lis a perspective view. Fig. 2 is a cross-section. Figs. 3 and 4 are inside `face views of the receiver.

A represents a section of a sluice through which dirt, gravel, tailings, or other auriferous earth is carried by a stream of water in mining operations. In order to properly prepare the sluice for the reception of this and other similar sections, the upper part oi' the sluice through which the earth or tailings first pass should have a bottom made of smooth bowlders or cobbles laid closely together, andthe interstices between them packed or puddled with clay so as to form a smooth bottom to prevent the lodgment of the particles of metal, while the projecting ends of the cobbles serve to pulverize the lumps of earth carried down by the stream. At a convenient point I then insert the section A. The bottom b of this section is made as slii'ooth as possible, and one or more rifde-bars are laid on the bottom diagonally across the sluice, forming what I call a track. Ii' more than one bar is used they may all be laid diagonally in one direction, leading into a side orcenter channel running longitudinally with the sluice, and terminating in a receptacle, e; ,ibut I prefer, when more than one riiie is used, to place them in azigzag form. These rifIie-bars that form thetrack can be varied in form; but I prefer to employ a thin, vnarrow plate, C, as a base, ,which shall extend diagonally from side to side, and having a bar or ridge along its lower edge which does not cover the base-plate at the angles. This track maybe amalgamated,if desired, and used without the receptacle, but in that case would have to be cleaned in the ordinary way, by shutting ofi' the water and scraping off the amalgam. The use of this track is to arrest the particles of metal, and' guide them to a cavity, c, at some point along its length. -The cavity c connects with a reservoir, H, which is herein shown as being attached to the side of the sluice; but its. location is immaterial so long as it is convenient. A circular plate or disk, g, is rmly iixed to the side of the sluice, and the pipe which forms the cavity c passes at an angle through the side of the sluice and through the plate g, as-shown. A box, H, which may be of any convenient shape, but is herein shown as circular to correspond with the plate g, is secured against the plate g by a bolt or screw, z', which passes through its center, so that it can be revolved by hand when desired. The inner face of the box EIy has a hole, j, through it, in the -proper position to allow the pipe which forms the cavity c to communicate with it when the box is in a certain position; but when the box is revolved slightly in either direction the communication between the two i is cut oi. A hole, It, is made in the upper be charged with mercury or the contents empl tied out, as desired, and a shield, l, is xed to the side of the sluice, which will cover the hole R when the pipe c and box communicate, and when in this position the box can be fixed in place by securing it to the plate g or to the side of the sluice by means of a padlock or by other suitable means.

The operation is as follows: The box H is charged with mercury until the mercury rises in the tube which forms the recess e, and stands almost level with the surface of the Zigzag plate c inside of the sluice. tailings being nor passed through the sluice, all of the particles of gold which nd the bottom of the sluice before passing the riffles will be caught on the track and directed back and forth by the bars or ridges d until they arrive at the cavity e, Where the gold, on account of its superior specific gravity, sinks through the mercury into the box H, While the dirt and dbris will oat over the mercury and be carried on down the sluice. In this manner the gold is continually accumulated in the box H, from which it can be removed as often as desired by simply removing the lock and turning the box H upside down, so as to empty out the contained amalgam and quicksilver through the hole R into a suitable vessel. This operation does not disturb the operation of sluicing, as the quicksilver in the cavity e Will remain undisturbed While the box is being emptied. The quicksilvcr can thus be strained and returned into the box, and communication again opened with the cavity.

The earth orv In order to prevent the loss of the quicksilver that Will be displaced by the accumulation of metal in the box H, a partition, n, shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, can be used in the box H, upon one side of which the mercury is held. This partition should be of the proper height to allow the quicksilver to flow over into the next compartment before it overflows into the sluice. This device can also be used in the beds of streams, and the particles of gold that are annually Washed down the river be caught and saved.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A mining-sluice with a reservoir, H, outside of the sluice, and connected With the interior of the sluice by means of the tube e, substantially as and for the purposes above described.

2. A safety-pocket for running sluices, consisting of the box H and tube or cavity e, in combination with a zigzag track, C, or series of diagonal riffles, substantially as and for the purpose above described.

3. The revolving box H having the hole K, inr combination with the shield l, and arranged to be locked for safety, substantially as above described.

In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand and seal. Y

J. B. BEERS. [L. s] Witnesses: A

J. L. BOONE, W. F. BINGHAM. 

